There’s no other competition in the world of football quite like the FA Cup, giving the anything-can-happen vibe before every match. As Newcastle players found out, nothing has changed in 2013.
Brighton 2 Newcastle 0
The mid-table Championship side took advantage of Newcastle’s current troubles, beating the Magpies 2-0 with an early goal from Andrea Orlandi and a late finisher, after Newcastle were pressing despite being with only 10 players, from Will Hoskins.
Bolton 2 Sunderland 2 – After so many years of Bolton in the Premier League, this one doesn’t seem like a surprise to the untrained eye. At the moment, Bolton are having a bad season in the Championship, ranked 16th, a bit far from the promotional battles. Sunderland aren’t the finest the Premier League has to offer, but this is a clash they should win. Chung-Yong Lee and Marvin Sordell put the home side 2-0 up after 48 minutes; Connor Wickham and Craig Gardner equalized, setting up the replay.
Crystal Palace 0 Stoke City 0 – When you think about Stoke’s troubles in the Premier League and achieving away wins, this isn’t such a huge surprise. Crystal Palace are enjoying a good season in the Championship, currently ranked third, two points shy of automatic promotion. It’s hard to see them winning in the replay at the Britannia Stadium.
Fulham 1 Blackpool 1
A mid table Premier League team not going through the best stage of the season facing a mediocre Championship side without the best of away records is always recipe for an upset. While Fulham did find the equalizer 10 minutes from time through Giorgos Karagounis, there were tense moments at Craven Cottage after Ludovic Sylvestre scored in the 60th minute.
Hull City 1 Leyton Orient 1 – Hull are having a fantastic season in the Championship, currently looking at a top 2 finish along with Cardiff. That didn’t matter to Leyton Orient, who are an unimpressive midtable side in League One on most days. David Mooney scored late to give the O’s a shocking lead, Nick Proschwitz equalized in the 90th minute.
Luton Town 1 Wolverhampton 0 – A huge upset as a Conference National side, Luton Two, sixth in England’s fifth tier of football, upset a team that is struggling in the Championship this season. Alex Lawless scored for The Hatters.
Macclesfield Town 2 Cardiff City 1 – Another Conference National side shocking a Championship team, this time Cardiff, league leaders of the Championship. Nathaniel Jarvis gave the favorites the lead, Matthew Barnes-Homer scored a quickfire double in the final five minutes to cause a huge upset.
Nottingham Forest 2 Oldham 3 – A League one side with a huge win against a good Championship side. Matt Smith put Forest up early with an own goal, Robbie Simpson scored twice for the visitors to turn the result around. A red card to Danny Collins was followed by a quick goal from Jose Baxter. Billy Sharp scored a late, meaningless goal for Forest.
Wigan 1 Bournemouth 1
Wigan are doing terribly in the Premier League at the moment, as usual falling into the relegation zone. Bournemouth aren’t exactly a League one powerhouse, but when things are going bad, even the easiest wins and points are hard to come by. Jordi Gomez scored a 70th minute penalty to save Wigan from an embarrassing loss; Eunan O´Kane scored the opener for Bournemouth.